


Looking Forward

by adorkablephil (kimberly_a)



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Anxiety, Dealing with people who are jerks, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Responsibility
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-14
Updated: 2017-04-14
Packaged: 2018-10-18 21:38:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10625649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kimberly_a/pseuds/adorkablephil
Summary: Dan and Phil go to the cinema, where a jerk makes Phil anxious (rating for Dan's potty mouth)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little bit of fluff inspired by Dan's story in a recent live show about what a horrible experience he and Phil had going to see the film "Get Out."

Phil had been looking forward to this film for weeks, harassing Dan to go see it with him, but now Dan thought Phil didn’t seem to see the movie screen at all. He was sitting straight as a poker and his eyes were wide, but he was focused on the man sitting in front of them as if waiting anxiously to see what was going to happen next. The man threw another piece of popcorn across the theater toward his friend, but it hit a stranger sitting nearby instead. With their shoulders touching in the narrow cinema seats, Dan could feel Phil flinch. Phil leaned close and whispered tensely in Dan’s ear, “Why doesn’t he stop?”

Dan looped his right arm through Phil’s left and clasped their hands together. It was only on their dates in darkened theatres that they could be so openly affectionate outside the flat. He squeezed Phil’s hand reassuringly and leaned to whisper in his ear, “He’s a dick. Try to ignore him and just enjoy the film.“ He knew it was easy for him to say, but not so easy for Phil to do.

Dan had always had strong emotional boundaries. When someone else was being a dick, he sometimes had problems restraining himself from **telling** the person they were being a dick, but he’d never felt any responsibility for someone else’s dickishness.

He knew Phil interacted with the world differently. To Phil, when someone else did something inappropriate or unkind, he felt personally responsible to fix it. In this moment, he was probably tearing himself up inside about that stranger who’d been hit with the popcorn. Dan couldn’t really understand how Phil felt, but he loved him for feeling that way. Phil’s compassion and empathy were some of his best traits, but also ones that made the world a difficult place for him sometimes.

To Dan, it was just some popcorn. The woman who’d been hit would probably forget about it as soon as something scary happened onscreen. In fact, she’d probably forgotten about it already. But he knew that Phil was probably angsting about the man in front of them and feeling responsible for not somehow preventing the guy’s inappropriate behavior.

He leaned to press a soft kiss against Phil’s cheek. Risky, even in a darkened theater, because they never knew when a fan might recognize them and be watching (or filming) their every move, but he knew Phil was hurting and knew also that he had to do **something**.

"Do you want to leave?” he whispered to Phil, but Phil shook his head and then turned his eyes determinedly toward the screen. He stayed frozen that way through the entire rest of the film, though Dan could feel his muscles clench every time the guy in front of them flipped his hood up and down. Dan doubted that Phil was taking in any of the action happening onscreen. He’d been so excited beforehand, and now he wasn’t enjoying himself at all. It made Dan angry on Phil’s behalf, but he felt powerless to help.

They took the bus home, careful to keep a respectable distance between them for appearance’s sake, which Dan found extremely frustrating when all he wanted to do was take Phil in his arms. Phil stared at the floor.

“You know,” Dan said casually, “I’d really like to see that film again. Would you be up for it maybe next week?”

Phil looked at him, and Dan could see the gratitude in his eyes. They barely needed to speak sometimes after being together this long. “Yeah,” Phil replied, his voice similarly breezy. “That sounds good.” And then he smiled, and his shoulders seemed to drop an inch or two, and Dan felt like things were on their way to being right in the world again.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, yeah, so I'm a slut for feedback, as always—kudos and comments are my food and drink (and maybe my air, too?). You can find me on Tumblr at [adorkablephil](http://adorkablephil.tumblr.com/) if you so desire.


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